The other day I looked at a friend's blog and they had some links to some other blogs of people that I know. And those people has other links to more blogs of people I know, and so on. Apparently there are a lot of people that I know that have blogs....
Endsville Flask, dgoerz, Nicolette, Ange "the cat" Mandel, Tim&Robyn, bronnyblog, Fat Tony, Any Janzen, Seto Safari, The Nesdolys, The Bakers, Cara, Kathy, The Englers, Julene Indonesia, Rebekah Janzen, Steve & Carolyn, Steve Klassen, The Harnetts, The Thoutenhoofds
And those are just the people that I know (or have met at least once in real life). There are a few more of people that I don't really know.
After reading a lot of blogs, and keeping one myself, I thought I would share my take on blogs:
Blogging is kinda fun because you can write about life (like a diary) but other people can read it and keep up to date on what is going on in your life (general or personal). To an extent, what and how you write will determine your audience, which could be thousands of people, or maybe it's just your mom. It has a different feel than email, but it serves a different purpose. Emailing 100 people you know, to tell them about your latest adventure, is not a good idea if only 10 of those people really care. And it sucks if there are 30 people who do care, that are not on your email list! But if you blog it then anyone that is interested can check out your blog when they want, if they want.
Everyone has the right (freedom) to keep a blog. Different people use blogs for different purposes.
Category #1: I think the best use of a blog is to keep friends and family up to date when you don't live in the same town. It is also an easy way to share pictures, and it doesn't plug up anyone's email box. I see a lot of young families doing this and I think it's great. Their audience is mostly family but it allows friends to have a peek into their lives too.
Category #2: Then there are the people that blog about their life but their audience seems to be their friends, who live in the same town as them. I'm not sure what purpose that serves. I would rather talk to my friends in person, than blog it and hope they read it. Get off the computer and get out and socialize! I scratch my head on those blogs, but maybe they are in category #3.
Category #3: Then there are the people that like to write, and would be keeping a journal or diary anyway. But they have decided to let others look in on their life. They aren't writing for anyone but themselves. So if you read their blog, you get what you get. I can respect that. Some people just have a lot of thoughts and need to get them written out. Some of the thoughts are really good, and I'm glad they are willing to share them.
I think I fit into categories 1 and 3. My friends and family are spread out so this blog allows me to reach a lot of people really easily. I think I also fit somewhat into category #3. I want a record for myself of all the things I experience, yet I am glad that there is an audience that enjoys what I write. It encourages me to write more.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Things I'm Gonna Miss
There are so many good things in this country, so here is an unsorted list of things I'm going to miss...
- The whole bathroom is a shower.
- If you leave something out, it heats up instead of cools down.
- Songtaus that will pick you up and drop you off ANYWHERE on the route.
- Good meals for a buck (drink included).
- Using a sprayer instead of toilet paper. Maybe this is more information than you wanted to know, but I've stopped using toilet paper. Cleaning your rear with water instead of toiliet paper is cleaner, more thorough and you don't have to buy toilet paper. It takes a while to get use to, but now if I build a house for myself, every toilet will have a sprayer.
- No tax (it's hidden in the price).
- Access to a drum kit and a bass guitar, anytime.
- Everyone smiles at each other. General good will toward their fellow man.
- Everyone has a level of respect. This place breeds much fewer jerks.
- Limited rules and regulations so you can do something dangerous and still have fun.
- Picking and eating fresh mangos.
- Songkran.
My Hump Song
Just in case you wanted to know, the most popular song in this country seems to be "My Hump" by the Black Eyed Peas. It's not a very intelligent song, nor a topic that I would bring up at the dinner table, or anywhere else for that matter. But I guess it's got a catchy beat, and they just love to play it. In fact there are even a couple of different versions. If a movie is in the Theatre for a week, that is a long time. But I guess songs are different, because they've been playing this one for the whole time I've been here. I am guaranteed to hear it at least once every market night (which is 3 nights a week), and other places too. Stupid song.
Picking Mangos
I picked mangos the other day. I have an open invitation Sanchez's (missionaries) to pick mangos at their house anytime. Did I mention I LOVE mangos? I know I could buy mangos in the market but I like to pick them myself because a) they're free and b) because I can.
The cool thing is that I'm doing them a favour. They don't have time to pick them all so the mangos just fall off the tree and litter their driveway. Once they hit the ground, they split open and the ants get them. The best mangos are the ones that you pick and then let ripen. There's nothing like a juicy ripe mango (except maybe a juicy ripe peach, but in my opinion, mangos are better).
Monday, April 17, 2006
Mixed Feelings
As I write this, it is now less than a month before I return to Canada. As I've lived here and the novelty has started to wear off, it is easy to forget how lucky I am to be here. It is just as easy to forget all the logistics of getting here and staying here. And it is sad to think that I may not return to Thailand for this length of time ever again. Yes I still have a month to go, but I can already feel my departure date coming up really fast, as the days fly by on the calendar.
Yes, I miss Canada, my friends, my family, (my car); and I will be glad to see them again. But I know that it will be probably no more than a month before everything is familiar again, and I will look back on the first 4 months of 2006 and realize how lucky I was to spend it in Thailand.
Yes, I miss Canada, my friends, my family, (my car); and I will be glad to see them again. But I know that it will be probably no more than a month before everything is familiar again, and I will look back on the first 4 months of 2006 and realize how lucky I was to spend it in Thailand.
Songkran Castles
Part of the festivities of Songkran in Bang Saen involves building sand castles on the beach. Man there must have been about 50 of them. They looked really nice, like they were professional or something--and maybe some were. But I was told that they build the structures out of wood and then spray the sand on. Once you know that dirty little secret, then they aren't quite as awe inspiring. Some of the sculptures were obvious works of art (there are some things you can't fake with wood), and other sculptures were perfect--a little too perfect. Something that is truly made of sand should not contain screw heads.
As creative as each sculpture was, they really weren't thinking outside the box. The monument theme got old fast, and they always included something from Buddhism (the face of Buddha, sculptures of Buddha, spirit houses, etc). The sand castle competition in Harrison every year is WAY better. But hey, it was free and it was still better than I could do. Check out my pics for more.
Everything Is A Little Zappy - Part II
It has become common knowledge at the church that you do NOT touch anything electrical at the church unless you are wearing (insulating) sandals--especially the microphones. The problem stems from the fact that nothing is grounded. I originally thought that was OK because all the floors are ceramic tile, and ceramic is not conductive (it is in fact a very good insulator). But apparently the grout between the tiles and the finishing coating on the tiles IS conductive. Hence you get zapped when you touch the metal part of the microphone if you have bare feet.
So I was curious to know just how much electricity was buzzing through my system when I touched some of the equipment the other day (I was wearing sandals but they were wet so I got
zapped). I took my multimeter, I attached one probe to the "grounded" part of the microphone, and I touched the other probe to the grout between the tiles: 150 VOLTS! That's a lot of volts. OK, putting things into perspective: Electrical outlets in Canada are only 120V. No wonder it hurt.
A technical side note: The voltage on the microphone seems to be enough to shock people but it is very low current (I measured it)--and it's the current that kills you. Even 12V can be lethal in the right conditions. So please don't feel at liberty to go out and stick your finger into empty light sockets just because over here we're getting zapped by microphones that carry a higher voltage.
So I was curious to know just how much electricity was buzzing through my system when I touched some of the equipment the other day (I was wearing sandals but they were wet so I got
zapped). I took my multimeter, I attached one probe to the "grounded" part of the microphone, and I touched the other probe to the grout between the tiles: 150 VOLTS! That's a lot of volts. OK, putting things into perspective: Electrical outlets in Canada are only 120V. No wonder it hurt.A technical side note: The voltage on the microphone seems to be enough to shock people but it is very low current (I measured it)--and it's the current that kills you. Even 12V can be lethal in the right conditions. So please don't feel at liberty to go out and stick your finger into empty light sockets just because over here we're getting zapped by microphones that carry a higher voltage.
Electronics Paradise
I went to Bangkok with my friend Beer (he's a person, not a beverage). He is also an electrical engineer (well, just finishing up his degree). So we have a lot of common interest, and would discuss it at length except for a GIANT language barrier. We get by.
There are no Radio Shacks in Thailand. If you need a decent selection of electronic parts, you go to Bangkok. More specifically you go to the biggest electronics market I've ever seen. I guess you could call it Bangkok's Electronics District. I decided not to take pictures because they wouldn't capture the place. There are HUNDREDS of little shops. Then you can enter buildings along the road which contain even tinier shops. Some are only 6ft by 4ft and they are just big enough for one person to sit behind the counter. You view their selection from the narrow corridor that you are walking down.
Pros: Lots of variety. Everything is really cheap.
Cons: Everyone carries mostly the same stuff. You have to search hundreds of stores to find the less common things.
And that actually sums it up for a lot of speciality places in Thailand. There are very few all encompassing department stores. Most of the sales are from tiny, family-run businesses. At the beginning it is overwhelming to see all the stores with all sorts of goodies. But after 20 stores, you realize that everyone carries pretty much the same as the next guy with only slight variation (or none at all). So there you have it. It's great for the treasure hunter, but exhausting for the guy who just wants to buy it and leave.
But to leave things on a happy note, it was a cool experience to see another side of Bangkok, and I will probably never see that many electronic components spanning that many streets again.
There are no Radio Shacks in Thailand. If you need a decent selection of electronic parts, you go to Bangkok. More specifically you go to the biggest electronics market I've ever seen. I guess you could call it Bangkok's Electronics District. I decided not to take pictures because they wouldn't capture the place. There are HUNDREDS of little shops. Then you can enter buildings along the road which contain even tinier shops. Some are only 6ft by 4ft and they are just big enough for one person to sit behind the counter. You view their selection from the narrow corridor that you are walking down.
Pros: Lots of variety. Everything is really cheap.
Cons: Everyone carries mostly the same stuff. You have to search hundreds of stores to find the less common things.
And that actually sums it up for a lot of speciality places in Thailand. There are very few all encompassing department stores. Most of the sales are from tiny, family-run businesses. At the beginning it is overwhelming to see all the stores with all sorts of goodies. But after 20 stores, you realize that everyone carries pretty much the same as the next guy with only slight variation (or none at all). So there you have it. It's great for the treasure hunter, but exhausting for the guy who just wants to buy it and leave.
But to leave things on a happy note, it was a cool experience to see another side of Bangkok, and I will probably never see that many electronic components spanning that many streets again.
Friday, April 14, 2006
Songkran
Songkran is the Thai New Year. It is a celebration that starts April 13 (the official Songkran day). On that day, it is tradition to bless the elders of your family by pouring scented water on their hands (I think it is to cool them off, or to symbolize it, because this is the hottest time of the year). That is the reverent part of Songkran. The days following are when everyone breaks lose and the entire kingdom has a water fight.
Bang Saen, where I am located, is a Thai vacation town. We have a really HUGE LONG beach (such that when you are in the ocean it goes as far as you can see in both directions. Probably about 2-3km solid). And everyone flocks to the beaches, so we probably get to see the best of
Songkran. The church is also on the main drag through town. This is very convenient for observing and participating in the water fight.
Try to imagine our road out front: a 6 lane street with a median down the middle. And hundreds upon hundreds of pickup trucks in virtual gridlock in both directions. Each truck has between 3 and 15 people in the back and 1 or 2 huge barrels filled with water. As they drive down the street they scoop out water from the barrels (with plastic bowls) and throw it at other trucks and at people on the street. And the people on the street do the same. The ultimate destination is the beach, but people drive along the main drag in both directions because that is where much of the excitement is. We took a drive away from town along the main highway that leads to Bangkok. We were fine but the traffic heading toward Bang Saen was pretty much stopped, for miles. I've just never seen anything like it.
There are also no shortage of water guns. And they're cheap too. 10 bucks Canadian will get you a pretty sweet machine (like a $30 super soaker). But the streams are always so small and you spend half the day pumping the stupid thing. I found that nothing delivers water better than a bucket.
Oh ya, and then there is this clay-like powder that they mix with water and smear on your cheeks. They hop off the trucks and cover your cheeks with the stuff and wish you a happy Songkran. It's all in good fun, and the stuff is not at all gritty, and comes off instantly with water.
Every day is like 35C, so getting hit with water is actually refreshing. The tap water is actually warm. We have one garden hose running from the church out to the street where we fill up a garbage can. We can't fill that thing up fast enough. There are that many people to soak. There are also guys that go around selling huge blocks of ice to put in your containers to cool off the water (blocks like 18"x12"x12"). This makes the water REALLY cold and of course then you get better reactions when you soak people with it. We bought 2 blocks once and I think they were gone in 15 minutes.
It's pretty much a given that if you are in the street or on the sidewalk, you are fair game (if you really didn't want to play, you would take the backroads). Our favorite targets are the songtaus (the pickups with seats that are like local buses). I don't know why you would take one if you didn't want to get wet. Not only that, but it's faster to walk than to drive. That's our favorite target, because most of those people are unarmed. The other favorite are the pickup trucks that are so full of people that they didn't have room for a water barrel. They're just sitting (or standing) ducks. Open windows are fair game too. So why they will roll down the passenger side window is beyond me. We generally leave it alone but they are asking for it. And then there are tour buses and you will get the odd one with a window open. I don't think those guys want to be hit but man, they're asking for it.
An Element of Respect
Here's the part that I think is the coolest (and why this would never work in Canada): There is an element of respect throughout the festivities. For example, street vendors selling (much needed) food and drinks will set up right on the side of the main road. But no one will spray them, or douse their food with water (at least not intentionally). When they put the powder on your face, they don't try to get it in your eyes or your ears or in your mouth (some might depending on if they are drunk or not, but so far I've only got it on cheeks and forehead). And ya, some people do get drunk and may take things too far. The girls have to be more careful than the guys (who might want to smear Songkran powder on more than just their face). But the number of decently sober people seem to far outweigh the not so sober people. Also, they don't spray little kids, and they don't go out of their way to soak people who obviously aren't "playing". Overall, the point is to have fun, not to tick people off. Man if we tried this in Canada, we would have riots, fights, assaults, arrests and everything else that comes with idiots being idiots. Over here it's about having fun, with the people who want to have fun. I like that.
At the time that I am writing this, I have soaked people with water for two days now (Thursday I "distributed" water to the masses from 1:30-6:30pm almost non-stop). And we have at least 2 more days to go. It has been crazy but expect the weekend will become even more intense as more people get time off work. If you have read this entire entry, I'm proud of you.
Bang Saen, where I am located, is a Thai vacation town. We have a really HUGE LONG beach (such that when you are in the ocean it goes as far as you can see in both directions. Probably about 2-3km solid). And everyone flocks to the beaches, so we probably get to see the best of
Songkran. The church is also on the main drag through town. This is very convenient for observing and participating in the water fight.Try to imagine our road out front: a 6 lane street with a median down the middle. And hundreds upon hundreds of pickup trucks in virtual gridlock in both directions. Each truck has between 3 and 15 people in the back and 1 or 2 huge barrels filled with water. As they drive down the street they scoop out water from the barrels (with plastic bowls) and throw it at other trucks and at people on the street. And the people on the street do the same. The ultimate destination is the beach, but people drive along the main drag in both directions because that is where much of the excitement is. We took a drive away from town along the main highway that leads to Bangkok. We were fine but the traffic heading toward Bang Saen was pretty much stopped, for miles. I've just never seen anything like it.
There are also no shortage of water guns. And they're cheap too. 10 bucks Canadian will get you a pretty sweet machine (like a $30 super soaker). But the streams are always so small and you spend half the day pumping the stupid thing. I found that nothing delivers water better than a bucket.
Oh ya, and then there is this clay-like powder that they mix with water and smear on your cheeks. They hop off the trucks and cover your cheeks with the stuff and wish you a happy Songkran. It's all in good fun, and the stuff is not at all gritty, and comes off instantly with water.
Every day is like 35C, so getting hit with water is actually refreshing. The tap water is actually warm. We have one garden hose running from the church out to the street where we fill up a garbage can. We can't fill that thing up fast enough. There are that many people to soak. There are also guys that go around selling huge blocks of ice to put in your containers to cool off the water (blocks like 18"x12"x12"). This makes the water REALLY cold and of course then you get better reactions when you soak people with it. We bought 2 blocks once and I think they were gone in 15 minutes.
It's pretty much a given that if you are in the street or on the sidewalk, you are fair game (if you really didn't want to play, you would take the backroads). Our favorite targets are the songtaus (the pickups with seats that are like local buses). I don't know why you would take one if you didn't want to get wet. Not only that, but it's faster to walk than to drive. That's our favorite target, because most of those people are unarmed. The other favorite are the pickup trucks that are so full of people that they didn't have room for a water barrel. They're just sitting (or standing) ducks. Open windows are fair game too. So why they will roll down the passenger side window is beyond me. We generally leave it alone but they are asking for it. And then there are tour buses and you will get the odd one with a window open. I don't think those guys want to be hit but man, they're asking for it.An Element of Respect
Here's the part that I think is the coolest (and why this would never work in Canada): There is an element of respect throughout the festivities. For example, street vendors selling (much needed) food and drinks will set up right on the side of the main road. But no one will spray them, or douse their food with water (at least not intentionally). When they put the powder on your face, they don't try to get it in your eyes or your ears or in your mouth (some might depending on if they are drunk or not, but so far I've only got it on cheeks and forehead). And ya, some people do get drunk and may take things too far. The girls have to be more careful than the guys (who might want to smear Songkran powder on more than just their face). But the number of decently sober people seem to far outweigh the not so sober people. Also, they don't spray little kids, and they don't go out of their way to soak people who obviously aren't "playing". Overall, the point is to have fun, not to tick people off. Man if we tried this in Canada, we would have riots, fights, assaults, arrests and everything else that comes with idiots being idiots. Over here it's about having fun, with the people who want to have fun. I like that.
At the time that I am writing this, I have soaked people with water for two days now (Thursday I "distributed" water to the masses from 1:30-6:30pm almost non-stop). And we have at least 2 more days to go. It has been crazy but expect the weekend will become even more intense as more people get time off work. If you have read this entire entry, I'm proud of you.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Kids Camp For A Day
Saturday I spent the day at a Thai resort. World Vision sponsors a whole bunch of kids in this province of Thailand (money to go to school and get a good education). So now school is out (for Thai kids) and World Vision put on a kids camp last weekend. The TREK team and I were in charge of all of Saturday, about 10am to 8pm. The TREK team only got back Friday night from their mid-term vacation. I've never seen so little planning for such a long period of time!
The kids were middle school age. I've never been a youth sponsor, but some people on TREK had been, so they knew the art of faking it. If you look like you know what's going on, they'll believe it. It wasn't completely unorganized. We had some stuff planned, but nothing was rehearsed, we just did it.
I found out that middle school Thai kids are pretty shy. They also don't hold hands very well. And every single one of them had a "dead fish" handshake. I guess when you've grown up in a society that avoids physical contact, that's what you get.
It was a good experience. I came out of it a little wiser. And a little more certain that I was not destined to be a youth pastor.
The kids were middle school age. I've never been a youth sponsor, but some people on TREK had been, so they knew the art of faking it. If you look like you know what's going on, they'll believe it. It wasn't completely unorganized. We had some stuff planned, but nothing was rehearsed, we just did it.
I found out that middle school Thai kids are pretty shy. They also don't hold hands very well. And every single one of them had a "dead fish" handshake. I guess when you've grown up in a society that avoids physical contact, that's what you get.
It was a good experience. I came out of it a little wiser. And a little more certain that I was not destined to be a youth pastor.
My Future
It's been no secret that I don't think I will be in Thailand long term. Some people have asked me what made me change my mind about Thailand. The answer is I never changed my mind. I came here because I felt called (or I felt something. Whatever you call it when you get a strong desire to return to a country and you can't get it out of your head). Part of me coming here was to determine whether I was called to Thailand long term or not. Now don't get me wrong, I really enjoy it here. It's a lot of fun actually, and it doesn't really feel like work. It's almost like a vacation except that I have stuff to do. The biggest thing that has turned me off to continuing longer is my own personality. I am not a people person like everyone else here. Nor am I a kids person. I'm a sit-at-the-computer person. Part of that is my job. Ok, I help out with interpersonal activities (such as teaching English twice a week) but it's not what I'm naturally drawn to. Overseas missionaries need to be people persons, otherwise they might as well be working in Canada. I feel like the work that I'm doing here is temporary. It will meet their current technical needs but that isn't ongoing (at least I don't think it is).
I don't think there is a need for a full time techie just for Team 2000. Ya, they always have videos to make and problems to fix, but not enough to justify a full time person. That would be overkill. If I was able to raise my own support, I could probably find enough work being a missionary techie for say, all of Asia (websites, video, computer tech support). That would be a pretty serious commitment, and it's just thoughts right now. I think my next step will be in Canada, but I really don't know what the future holds in Canada or what the future holds after that.
This is where I need God's guidance and your prayers.
I don't think there is a need for a full time techie just for Team 2000. Ya, they always have videos to make and problems to fix, but not enough to justify a full time person. That would be overkill. If I was able to raise my own support, I could probably find enough work being a missionary techie for say, all of Asia (websites, video, computer tech support). That would be a pretty serious commitment, and it's just thoughts right now. I think my next step will be in Canada, but I really don't know what the future holds in Canada or what the future holds after that.
This is where I need God's guidance and your prayers.
Friday, April 07, 2006
Convenience Stores and Sewers
There are a lot of 7-11 convenience stores in Thailand. In the city you are never more than a 10 minute walk from one. And even if you were more than 10 minutes away, you are never more than 2 minutes away from a local convenience store (not always a full store, but they'll at least have drinks and usually some chips). Now that's convenience.
Thailand also has a very large sewage system, not unlike most developed countries. The difference is that you KNOW it's there. There are metal grills and concrete slabs EVERYWHERE. (Under the concrete slabs is the giant sewer pipe. The slabs also have a couple of holes in them, probably for lifting them up, but also for pouring stuff into them and ventilation). 7-11 is the name of a store, but it is also the average number steps you have to take before stepping on either a concrete slab or a metal grille over the sewer pipe, as you walk along the side of the road. There are literally that many. For clarification, the storm drain system is not separate from the sewer system. There is only one system, and that means that there is a lot of raw sewage beneath your feet and it often smells as much. It becomes a part of life. You just have to know that when you're in the city, don't take a deep breath and expect fresh air, you may just get a waft of the sewer smell.
Thailand also has a very large sewage system, not unlike most developed countries. The difference is that you KNOW it's there. There are metal grills and concrete slabs EVERYWHERE. (Under the concrete slabs is the giant sewer pipe. The slabs also have a couple of holes in them, probably for lifting them up, but also for pouring stuff into them and ventilation). 7-11 is the name of a store, but it is also the average number steps you have to take before stepping on either a concrete slab or a metal grille over the sewer pipe, as you walk along the side of the road. There are literally that many. For clarification, the storm drain system is not separate from the sewer system. There is only one system, and that means that there is a lot of raw sewage beneath your feet and it often smells as much. It becomes a part of life. You just have to know that when you're in the city, don't take a deep breath and expect fresh air, you may just get a waft of the sewer smell.
The Three Hour Tour
We have made some friends in Ang Sila, a small fishing village about a 15 minute drive from TLC (still part of Chonburi). That lead to us doing some clean up and building work for them (the MEI team helped out with that). And to show some of their gratitude, they invited the TREK team and I on a tour on a fishing boat. Sweet.
Before we got into the boat, we got to see one of the things they harvest...jellyfish. GIANT jellyfish. Each one of them was the biggest I've ever seen. We're talking around 18" in diameter for some of them. Check out the pictures. Apparently there is good money to be made in harvesting jellyfish, but I wouldn't eat them.
There is a lot more activity happening out in the ocean than you can see from land. Apparently the water is fairly shallow even WAY WAY out in the water (like a couple of kilometres). I know this because there are clusters of bamboo poles sticking out of the water. Even some elaborate bamboo structures that are solidly anchored in the ocean floor (see my pictures in late March).
First we stopped where guys were harvesting mussels. It looks like they pound bamboo poles into the ocean floor and leave them there for a long time (just sticking out of the water). Over time, mussels and coral grow all over them. Then divers bring them up and they scrape them off. The mussel shells were a nice green colour, not the black that I see at home. In between the mussels are a whole lot of other sea creatures like baby shrimp and tiny crabs.
Next stop was at a boat that was collecting crabs. I think the fishing guys must all know each other cause this guy gave us a bucket of crabs for free. All the crabs were already tied up with elastics, rendering them "safe". They have a way of tying a crab up with 1 elastic band. The coolest thing about these crabs were that their legs were a beautiful light blue colour. He also gave us a horseshoe crab. That was a very interesting looking creature. See the pictures to see what I mean.
After a while the severe rocking of the boat got to Tony and he had to lie down for a bit. Even I was wondering if I was going to start feeling noxious. There wasn't a whole lot of room on deck, as it was a very small boat (about 20 feet long I'm guessing). Plus the deck was at quite a steep angle, not at all flat. And we had around 10 or 12 people on board.
Then we docked at a different pier for a few minutes and some of the Thai guys got out and left. We didn't understand what was going on until they came back. We had stopped for more beer.
We travelled some more and eventually ended up at this processing house on stilts in the middle of the ocean. It seemed to be abandoned but it was big. The stilts were concrete and the floor of the place was about 10 feet above the water (depending on the tide). It too had large concrete tubs, (like the ones we saw on shore with all the jellyfish) but they were all empty. We stayed there a while and swam in the ocean (it was warm). Some of the guys even cooked up some of the crab for the ride home.
All in all it was a really cool experience to see what stuff is out there to be harvested and to see how they do what they do.
Before we got into the boat, we got to see one of the things they harvest...jellyfish. GIANT jellyfish. Each one of them was the biggest I've ever seen. We're talking around 18" in diameter for some of them. Check out the pictures. Apparently there is good money to be made in harvesting jellyfish, but I wouldn't eat them.There is a lot more activity happening out in the ocean than you can see from land. Apparently the water is fairly shallow even WAY WAY out in the water (like a couple of kilometres). I know this because there are clusters of bamboo poles sticking out of the water. Even some elaborate bamboo structures that are solidly anchored in the ocean floor (see my pictures in late March).
First we stopped where guys were harvesting mussels. It looks like they pound bamboo poles into the ocean floor and leave them there for a long time (just sticking out of the water). Over time, mussels and coral grow all over them. Then divers bring them up and they scrape them off. The mussel shells were a nice green colour, not the black that I see at home. In between the mussels are a whole lot of other sea creatures like baby shrimp and tiny crabs.
Next stop was at a boat that was collecting crabs. I think the fishing guys must all know each other cause this guy gave us a bucket of crabs for free. All the crabs were already tied up with elastics, rendering them "safe". They have a way of tying a crab up with 1 elastic band. The coolest thing about these crabs were that their legs were a beautiful light blue colour. He also gave us a horseshoe crab. That was a very interesting looking creature. See the pictures to see what I mean.
After a while the severe rocking of the boat got to Tony and he had to lie down for a bit. Even I was wondering if I was going to start feeling noxious. There wasn't a whole lot of room on deck, as it was a very small boat (about 20 feet long I'm guessing). Plus the deck was at quite a steep angle, not at all flat. And we had around 10 or 12 people on board.
Then we docked at a different pier for a few minutes and some of the Thai guys got out and left. We didn't understand what was going on until they came back. We had stopped for more beer.
We travelled some more and eventually ended up at this processing house on stilts in the middle of the ocean. It seemed to be abandoned but it was big. The stilts were concrete and the floor of the place was about 10 feet above the water (depending on the tide). It too had large concrete tubs, (like the ones we saw on shore with all the jellyfish) but they were all empty. We stayed there a while and swam in the ocean (it was warm). Some of the guys even cooked up some of the crab for the ride home.
All in all it was a really cool experience to see what stuff is out there to be harvested and to see how they do what they do.
The Neighbours
It's 5:55am and I can't sleep. I woke up at about 5:30 and now that I'm awake it is going to be hard to get to get sleep. The time between 3:00am and 8:00am is best spent sleeping because that's when the noise starts.
The most annoying neighbour isn't a person, it's a rooster. He starts up at about 3:00am and doesn't stop until well into the day. He's like every 10 seconds. I would not be opposed to a couple of gunshots in his direction. At 6:00am (about now) the birds start up, and I don't mind that so much because it is mainly background noise. But it was sure a lot quieter before.
I am in a townhouse, with neighbours on both sides. I have come to realize just how thin the walls are. You can buy some incredibly thin cheap cinder blocks. One good hit with a hammer and they crumble. But they use them anyway. When they're finished a wall they cover it with stucco and that's it. But it still would take only a couple of good hits with a hammer to make a hole big enough to tell my neighbours to shut up.
For the most part, the neighbours have been fine. But this morning someone has been dropping a ping pong ball onto the floor and letting it bounce. THAT is annoying at 5:30 in the morning! Tim & Robyn of the TREK team are two doors down. Tim says he can hear the guy fart next door. We share the same neighbour and I haven't heart anything but I believe him. Oh and then there was the other day when the lady next door was just yelling at the top of her lungs (fortunately this was around 9:00am). She was obviously mad at someone or something, only I didn't hear anyone respond (but that was way too loud to be talking on a cell phone).
All this to say I'm getting more and more awake and I would really like to be sleeping right now. #$@%^$%$#%$!!
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Life At The Orphanage
The orphanage is really just a two storey, two bedroom townhouse. It sits empty except at night when I'm here sleeping or typing on the computer (like I am right now). And I've got A/C and a very large, comfortable bed so I'm happy. But life here has had its moments. Here is a summary of my adventures (some of this is a rant).
A few days after moving in, the water started coming out of the tap in spurts. Then it just stopped coming out altogether. So I check the tank outside and it was EMPTY (everyone has a tank at their house in case of a water outage). Valves were open but no water. Turns out whoever was at the place last, turned off the water when they left, and I had been using tank water the whole time. Mystery solved (thanks Tim).
Nobody told me that there was going to be someone cleaning the place while I was there. I first found out about the mystery person because the pillows on my bed would get moved around. Not a big deal but c'mon, leave my pillow alone.
Went into the kitchen one evening and discovered a giant spider. I think there is a picture of him in my photo album. He must have been 2" in diameter (with the legs). Tony wanted to kill him, but the spider moved extremely fast and went up into a crack in the ceiling. I haven't seen him since, and I've decided he must have moved next door.
Came home one day and flicked the switch for the lights. Nothing. Checked the breakers, they were all on. A power outage? But my neighbours had lights on. So I go to check the power meter on the telephone pole in front of my house. THE METER IS GONE! I call Karen, who calls the landlord, who comes over right away to inspect the non-existant meter. Apparently he sent someone to pay the electrical bill and the guy didn't pay it (and when you don't pay your bill, that's it, no power for you!) He was very appologetic and offered a room at his house. I declined, but took all my bedding and slept at Tony & Scott's place.
The next day I brought my bedding back, and put it on my bed. I left it in a ball because I didn't know if I was really going to get electricity that day. When I came back that night at 11:00pm I had power! Went upstairs and my bedding had disappeared! It's 11:00 at night, and my bedding is gone. AAAAAAAH! What are you supposed to do in a situation like this? I can't go back to the church (it's past 11), and there are no other sheets in the orphanage. I concluded that the cleaning lady had assumed the bedding was off to be cleaned and took it to the laundrymat (turns out I was right). Well intentioned I'm sure, but I need that bedding EVERY night. Finally, I took a comforter from the other bedroom and slept without sheets.
About a week ago, Goi and I were in the office when 2 vanloads of kids show up at the front doorsteps of the church. We were the only ones at the church and neither of us had any idea what this was about. They were from Lorenzo Home which is a catholic AIDS orphanage nearby. They wanted to see the orphanage. OH. For you see, I wasn't expecting any visitors. And although the place wasn't really messy, it wasn't exactly presentable. So we got on the phone with Karen pretty quick and so Goi waited with the Nun and the Kids while I high tailed it to the orphanage for some quick sweeping and putting away of some unmentionables that I had left out to dry. I learned that when living in an orphanless orphanage, always have the place presentable.
In my quick sweep job, I swept up 2 cockroaches who were upsidedown and dead. It seems that if a cockroach finds himself on his back, there is nothing he can do to remedy the situation. What I want to know is what they were doing to get themselved in that situation in the first place. One of the cockroaches had died in front of the refridgerator. The day after I swept up, there was another cockroach on his back in front of the refridgerator. What's the deal with dying on your back in front of the refridgerator?? And if I clean this one up, will another one take its place?
Those are the adventures so far. I guess the next thing would be the wireless internet which keeps going down (as I write this, the internet is down). Oh well, it all keeps life interesting.
A few days after moving in, the water started coming out of the tap in spurts. Then it just stopped coming out altogether. So I check the tank outside and it was EMPTY (everyone has a tank at their house in case of a water outage). Valves were open but no water. Turns out whoever was at the place last, turned off the water when they left, and I had been using tank water the whole time. Mystery solved (thanks Tim).
Nobody told me that there was going to be someone cleaning the place while I was there. I first found out about the mystery person because the pillows on my bed would get moved around. Not a big deal but c'mon, leave my pillow alone.
Went into the kitchen one evening and discovered a giant spider. I think there is a picture of him in my photo album. He must have been 2" in diameter (with the legs). Tony wanted to kill him, but the spider moved extremely fast and went up into a crack in the ceiling. I haven't seen him since, and I've decided he must have moved next door.
Came home one day and flicked the switch for the lights. Nothing. Checked the breakers, they were all on. A power outage? But my neighbours had lights on. So I go to check the power meter on the telephone pole in front of my house. THE METER IS GONE! I call Karen, who calls the landlord, who comes over right away to inspect the non-existant meter. Apparently he sent someone to pay the electrical bill and the guy didn't pay it (and when you don't pay your bill, that's it, no power for you!) He was very appologetic and offered a room at his house. I declined, but took all my bedding and slept at Tony & Scott's place.
The next day I brought my bedding back, and put it on my bed. I left it in a ball because I didn't know if I was really going to get electricity that day. When I came back that night at 11:00pm I had power! Went upstairs and my bedding had disappeared! It's 11:00 at night, and my bedding is gone. AAAAAAAH! What are you supposed to do in a situation like this? I can't go back to the church (it's past 11), and there are no other sheets in the orphanage. I concluded that the cleaning lady had assumed the bedding was off to be cleaned and took it to the laundrymat (turns out I was right). Well intentioned I'm sure, but I need that bedding EVERY night. Finally, I took a comforter from the other bedroom and slept without sheets.
About a week ago, Goi and I were in the office when 2 vanloads of kids show up at the front doorsteps of the church. We were the only ones at the church and neither of us had any idea what this was about. They were from Lorenzo Home which is a catholic AIDS orphanage nearby. They wanted to see the orphanage. OH. For you see, I wasn't expecting any visitors. And although the place wasn't really messy, it wasn't exactly presentable. So we got on the phone with Karen pretty quick and so Goi waited with the Nun and the Kids while I high tailed it to the orphanage for some quick sweeping and putting away of some unmentionables that I had left out to dry. I learned that when living in an orphanless orphanage, always have the place presentable.
In my quick sweep job, I swept up 2 cockroaches who were upsidedown and dead. It seems that if a cockroach finds himself on his back, there is nothing he can do to remedy the situation. What I want to know is what they were doing to get themselved in that situation in the first place. One of the cockroaches had died in front of the refridgerator. The day after I swept up, there was another cockroach on his back in front of the refridgerator. What's the deal with dying on your back in front of the refridgerator?? And if I clean this one up, will another one take its place?
Those are the adventures so far. I guess the next thing would be the wireless internet which keeps going down (as I write this, the internet is down). Oh well, it all keeps life interesting.
God At Work
This is from a letter that Karen Hubert Sanchez of Team 2000 just recently sent out.
-----
This just happened. For the last few weeks, P' Ganiga, one of our newer believers, has been sharing her burden for her boss, P' Laan. P' Ganiga was able to walk with her boss as she discovered she had breast cancer, and went to Bangkok with her to visit the doctor there. P' Ganiga was burdened for P' Laan because she did not want to obey the doctor and have her breast removed.
Carmen got a group of us from TLC together and we went to share Christ with P' Laan and pray for her. During this time, it just so happened that Dan and Agnes Ratzlaff from Abbotsford were here scouting out some land for our church. A few years earlier, Agnes had experienced God's grace while fighting kidney cancer, and she was happy for the chance to share her story with P' Laan. We went last Monday afternoon and Agnes shared some scriptures and her story and then we prayed and laid hands on P' Laan. Her surgery was scheduled for Friday.
On Friday, P' Laan went to Bangkok for her surgery, and the doctor examined her before the surgery. He told her to go home. She was cancer free!!! Amazed, P' Laan admitted to P' Ganiga that she too had prayed that Monday after she received prayer. She prayed her very first prayer and silently told God that if He would heal her, she would go to church every Sunday.
Yesterday, P' Laan came to church for the first time ever, keeping her promise to God. She loved it all...the worship and the preaching and the fellowship.
Pray for P' Laan to meet the God that healed her and to grow in her new faith.
-----
Wow, eh? This is the kind of stuff I hear about around here! I know that I'm "way over there in Thailand" and it may not sound as exciting because the news is second hand and you don't know the people. But P'Laan was at our church this Sunday. This is a real person who HAD real cancer, and was really healed! Really. I mean you don't just schedule a surgery in Bankok unless it is serious. Can you imagine having the doctor say to you "Why are you here? There's nothing wrong with you."!!?? Wow. Anyway, I share this with you to increase your faith, and to encourage you that prayer DOES work. God is listening and he answers prayer. Really.
-----
This just happened. For the last few weeks, P' Ganiga, one of our newer believers, has been sharing her burden for her boss, P' Laan. P' Ganiga was able to walk with her boss as she discovered she had breast cancer, and went to Bangkok with her to visit the doctor there. P' Ganiga was burdened for P' Laan because she did not want to obey the doctor and have her breast removed.
Carmen got a group of us from TLC together and we went to share Christ with P' Laan and pray for her. During this time, it just so happened that Dan and Agnes Ratzlaff from Abbotsford were here scouting out some land for our church. A few years earlier, Agnes had experienced God's grace while fighting kidney cancer, and she was happy for the chance to share her story with P' Laan. We went last Monday afternoon and Agnes shared some scriptures and her story and then we prayed and laid hands on P' Laan. Her surgery was scheduled for Friday.
On Friday, P' Laan went to Bangkok for her surgery, and the doctor examined her before the surgery. He told her to go home. She was cancer free!!! Amazed, P' Laan admitted to P' Ganiga that she too had prayed that Monday after she received prayer. She prayed her very first prayer and silently told God that if He would heal her, she would go to church every Sunday.
Yesterday, P' Laan came to church for the first time ever, keeping her promise to God. She loved it all...the worship and the preaching and the fellowship.
Pray for P' Laan to meet the God that healed her and to grow in her new faith.
-----
Wow, eh? This is the kind of stuff I hear about around here! I know that I'm "way over there in Thailand" and it may not sound as exciting because the news is second hand and you don't know the people. But P'Laan was at our church this Sunday. This is a real person who HAD real cancer, and was really healed! Really. I mean you don't just schedule a surgery in Bankok unless it is serious. Can you imagine having the doctor say to you "Why are you here? There's nothing wrong with you."!!?? Wow. Anyway, I share this with you to increase your faith, and to encourage you that prayer DOES work. God is listening and he answers prayer. Really.
The Chicken Ladies
Beef is hard to find here. It's just not mainstream. The big meats here are pork, seafood and chicken. And that's fine with me cause I like pork and chicken and I can tolerate seafood.
I have become a regular customer with two chicken ladies (for the CHICKEN, not for the ladies!! Sheesh, they're in their 40's.) The first chicken lady was shown to me by Ricky. He brings all the visiting teams to her for a meal. She is set up at the beach at light pole #4 and she's there every day serving chicken and sticky rice. And now she even sells fresh beef and pork jerky (the best you'll ever have). Here chicken is barbequed chicken breast chopped into strips (bone and all). Served with a dipping hot sauce, it is really good stuff.
The second chicken lady was actually my own discovery. I went to a food market near the university in search of some form of deep fried chicken ("guy tot" for those of you who don't speak Thai). And I found this one lady with her little stand selling deep fried chicken. It looks and tastes like KFC but it is BONELESS and WAY CHEAPER. About 5 baht per piece (remember 35 baht is a dollar). And she's there every night. Man, after having her chicken, going to KFC is a step down! I think I'm addicted.
I have become a regular customer with two chicken ladies (for the CHICKEN, not for the ladies!! Sheesh, they're in their 40's.) The first chicken lady was shown to me by Ricky. He brings all the visiting teams to her for a meal. She is set up at the beach at light pole #4 and she's there every day serving chicken and sticky rice. And now she even sells fresh beef and pork jerky (the best you'll ever have). Here chicken is barbequed chicken breast chopped into strips (bone and all). Served with a dipping hot sauce, it is really good stuff.
The second chicken lady was actually my own discovery. I went to a food market near the university in search of some form of deep fried chicken ("guy tot" for those of you who don't speak Thai). And I found this one lady with her little stand selling deep fried chicken. It looks and tastes like KFC but it is BONELESS and WAY CHEAPER. About 5 baht per piece (remember 35 baht is a dollar). And she's there every night. Man, after having her chicken, going to KFC is a step down! I think I'm addicted.
Pants vs. Shorts, Heat vs. Mosquitoes
You may know that we are in the middle of summer here. What you may not know is that I'm not wearing shorts. The reasons stem partly from abundant air conditioning, but mostly from the hassle of wearing shorts (wow, I never thought I would ever call shorts a "hassle").
I am required to wear pants for both church and English classes. Pants are more respectable than shorts, and so they are required for church and especially in a teaching position such as English class. So that takes care of 3 days of pants (yes I could wear shorts the rest of the time but I'm lazy and I don't feel like changing in the middle of the day). But the main reason I wear pants is because of mosquitoes. For the first while I wore shorts and my legs were getting eaten. Pants solved that problem. Plus, I've adapted to the weather and I don't find it unbearable to wear pants all the time.
So there you go: Pants or Mosquitoes? I choose pants.
I am required to wear pants for both church and English classes. Pants are more respectable than shorts, and so they are required for church and especially in a teaching position such as English class. So that takes care of 3 days of pants (yes I could wear shorts the rest of the time but I'm lazy and I don't feel like changing in the middle of the day). But the main reason I wear pants is because of mosquitoes. For the first while I wore shorts and my legs were getting eaten. Pants solved that problem. Plus, I've adapted to the weather and I don't find it unbearable to wear pants all the time.
So there you go: Pants or Mosquitoes? I choose pants.
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
My New Blog Home
Welcome to my new blog site.
After doing a bunch of research on the most popular blog sites, I concluded that blogger/blogspot is definitely the best one. They are owned by Google now, and that means realiability (I'm talking to you diary-x), speed, lots of features, and lots of storage space. Too bad I didn't research this BEFORE I started blogging.
Now I wish that I could move my old blog entries over to here. So if you want to read my old blogs, go to http://jonknoll.blog.com
P.S. My appologies to those who now have to sign up with yet another blog site so they can post comments.
P.P.S. For those who use newsreaders, my link is http://jonknoll.blogspot.com/atom.xml (For those who don't know what I'm talking about...uh, never mind).
After doing a bunch of research on the most popular blog sites, I concluded that blogger/blogspot is definitely the best one. They are owned by Google now, and that means realiability (I'm talking to you diary-x), speed, lots of features, and lots of storage space. Too bad I didn't research this BEFORE I started blogging.
Now I wish that I could move my old blog entries over to here. So if you want to read my old blogs, go to http://jonknoll.blog.com
P.S. My appologies to those who now have to sign up with yet another blog site so they can post comments.
P.P.S. For those who use newsreaders, my link is http://jonknoll.blogspot.com/atom.xml (For those who don't know what I'm talking about...uh, never mind).
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